Managing the professional service firm
by David H. Maister · first published 1993
80% recommend20% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Practical, commonsense guide to running a consultancy or professional services firm, covering economics, incentives, leverage and culture; valued by founders and working consultants for its concrete, accurate framing.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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Sort of OT: Michael, have you read Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister? He writes powerfully about economics, incentives, and culture as they relate to management. I think his book would give you a lot to think about, and you'd find plenty both to learn…
on “Steve Jobs' first boss: 'Very few companies would hire Steve, even today'” ↗Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister. No longer doing consulting, but found it invaluable as a tech person building a consulting team and trying to break into enterprise. Probably useful for any professional consulting…
on “Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study?” ↗…I'm much better at estimating than other devs will admit to. My Plan A has been to start my own dev partnership, although it's been hard to find the right people to get it off the ground. I really like Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister, and I think the partner/associates model has great potential for making programming viable as a life-long career. I haven't tried hiring any people (full time or as contractors), except…
on “Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)” ↗I'd like to recommend David Maister's book http://www.amazon.com/Managing-The-Professional-Service-Firm... It is similar but presents it from the angle of a company, not an individual. It focuses more on how to run a consultancy effectively.
on “Career.fork() - How To Thrive As A Freelance Developer” ↗Like in coding, complexity in a business partnership might be a warning. The book Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Meister has a lot of lessons for anyone running a traditional parter/associates firm, and the last part talks about splitting the profits. My read is that a "dumb" approach (equal split or simple…
on “Saving a Project and a Company” ↗The Tufte book is a pleasure but hard to tote to the beach. If you try to carry it on a plane they might charge you extra. :-) Some other ideas: Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister. I can't keep this one on my shelf because I keep giving it away. Cryptography Engineering by Bruce Schneier. Very accessible. Probably not very practical if you're not building a cryptosystem,…
on “Ask HN: Good business or technology book recommendations?” ↗This article touches on some ideas about developer psychology also present in David Maister's book Managing the Professional Service Firm: basically that many professionals, whether in IT or law/accounting/consulting/engineering/etc, share a desire for excellence, recognition, and autonomy. There is a lot more in that book that applies…
on “Focusing on Developer Happiness with Humane Development” ↗- Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister - Quantum Computing since Democritus by Scott Aaronson - Cryptography Engineering by Bruce Schneier et al - Time Management for System Administrators by Thomas Limoncelli - Expert…
on “Ask HN: Books with a high signal to noise ratio?” ↗I think it's completely viable, although probably less so with VC funds. I plug this book a lot on HN, but in Managing the Professional Service Firm, David Maister talks about how a firm has 3 goals that must stay in balance: profit, job satisfaction, and client happiness. If any part is neglected, things will fall apart. In the long run, job satisfaction…
on “Tech layoffs more than double in Bay Area” ↗Also Managing the Professional Service Firm By David Maister Helps understand how consulting type firms as a whole work
on “Ask HN: Moving from a product org to a consulting org: What should I know?” ↗…I'd love to try again with someone who is already independent and is ready to try something bigger. I haven't read Developer Hegemony, but another great book about the dynamics of such a partnership is Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister. It's pretty dense, but it's full of great ideas. I went into freelancing in part to avoid becoming a manager, and I think with the right kind of partnership you could still practice…
on “Times are great for programmers now. How does it end?” ↗I run a professional software-development firm, and Managing the Professional Service Firm by David Maister is the most accurate and instructive book I've read on the topic (and not for lack of other books). Maister basically made a manual of my whole world which includes things I never thought…
on “Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study?” ↗…(withstand the writing style, glib observations) - The Business Model Generation book- massive leap in understanding after this - Traction (Gabriel Weinberg). Marketing entrypoint zeroed into today - Managing the Professional Service Firm (Maiser) (incidentally related to what I do but so useful) - Thinking in Systems (Meadows) - An Elegant Puzzle (Engineering management book by Will Larson. Actionable and bite-sized) - Measure What…
on “Ask HN: What books helped you in your entrepreneurship journey?” ↗Why don't you read some books? - Out of the crisis and The new economics, Deming - Workplace Management and Toyota Production System, Ohno - Peopleware, DeMarco & Lister - Managing the professional service firm, Meister (delegation) - Leadership Handbook, US Army
on “Ask HN: How to be a manager? Any good sources for learning how to delegate?” ↗Managing The Professional Service Firm by David Maister was recommended on HN for all entrepreneurs. It has a very practical and commonsense way of explaining how to approach all facets of a business and well worth reading.
on “Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2025?” ↗